Wings looking to prove themselves in the third quarter

The Philadelphia Wings are looking to prove themselves in the third quarter this Sunday as they take on the Buffalo Bandits at 4 p.m. at the Wells Fargo Center.

During the first four games of the season, the Wings (2-2) scored 11 goals total in each the first and second quarters. They nabbed 14 goals in the fourth quarter. But in the third quarter, they’ve been held to just four goals.

As Wings co-captain Dan Dawson put it: “It’s like two different teams… We have to come prepared to play for 60-minutes.”

“We have teams making two or three goal runs in the third quarter and we don’t stay focused enough,” said Wings head coach Johnny Mouradian. “We have to stay focused and keep that positive energy – even if they bang in a couple of easy goals.”

The Wings lost 6 – 15 last week at home to the Toronto Rock (3-2), which held the Wings scoreless for the entire second half. That’s only added motivation in the Wings locker room, said Wings player Max Seibald.

The team beat the Bandits (2-3) during their first meeting of the season in upstate New York 13-10. The team rebounded from a weak third quarter, where they trailed by two at the start of the fourth quarter before going on a 6 – 1 run to get the win.

“It’s going to be two hungry teams this weekend,” Seibald said. “We have to focus on our defensive fundamentals and take better shots.”

Dawson agreed.

“We have to establish something at home – that when you come to play Philly, you’re coming to fight,” Dawson said. “It’s going to be a war on the playing field.”